Jackie Devine set up two goals for Longford in the last six minutes of the 1968 Leinster Senior Football Championship final to beat Laois by 3-9 to 1-4, where Sean Donnelly and Jim Hannify were the scorers. It was their only Leinster title, and it came two years after a great victory over Galway by nine points to eight in the National League final. They also won the O'Byrne Cup in 1965, and again in 2000.

When they lost a replayed Leinster semi-final in 1970 it was their fourth semi-final in six years. Victories over Westmeath and Wicklow in 1988 left the county on the verge of a Leinster final after 20 years. The team played well against Dublin and led by three points at half-time. Team manager and sports psychologist Brendan Hackett has cited what happened next as an example of lack of self-belief in extremis: Dublin drew level with 20 minutes remaining and won by 18 points.

Since first getting the taste in 1928, Longford like to beat Meath in the Championship, and shocked them in 1982. They forced Offaly to a replay in 1984, but the promise of the Under-21 teams that reached successive Leinster finals in 1981 and 1982 failed to materialise. In 2002 the county's minor team won the Leinster Minor Football Championship, the following year the county Vocational Schools team won the All-Ireland Vocational Schools Championship at A and B level, the only county to do so.

The footballers had mixed fortunes in 2014. The Leinster Championship campaign finally yielded a win over Offaly for new manager Jack Sheedy on a scoreline of 0-19 to 0-16, but Wexford proved to be our annual banana skin in the Quarter Final, losing by 1-13 to 1-15 in the sunshine of Pearse Park. The qualifiers took us to Derry and a mouth-watering tie which turned into an epic encounter with Longford winning by 2 points in a high scoring game. Unfortunately it was back down to earth with a bang in the next round when Tipperary inflicted a 17-point defeat on Longford to end the 2014 championship campaign.[2]

Like most of its neighbours, Longford have struggled to compete with the bigger counties as they only have three Hurling teams in the county, Slashers, Wolfe Tones and Clonguish. The county team won the National League Division 3 title in 2002, In 2005 & 2006 they won the Leinster Shield. They won the Lory Meagher Cup, for the first time, in Croke Park on 3 July 2010 and won on a scoreline 1 – 20 to Donegal 1 – 12.

Liam Griffin has said the GAA should be ashamed of itself over its failure in the promotion of hurling.

Australia is 24 hours away, yet we can create a new game with the Aussie Rules lads. Longford and Leitrim are right here, yet we largely ignore them and many others too when it comes to promoting hurling. The new D. J. Carey could be living in Longford, Leitrim or Donegal, but we'll never know. We have failed him. [...] If someone can market coloured gripe water, call it Coca Cola and clean up worldwide, we should be able to sell hurling in Longford.[3]

Longford's Team of the Millenium was unique as it contained the only father and son combination in the country; Drumlish's Jim Hannify Snr and Jnr.

2001 saw Longford surrender the O’Byrne cup in the opening round. The league saw Longford win 4 from the first 5, but defeats to Monaghan and Kildare in the final round meant there was no promotion. The championship started with a terrific win over Louth in Navan to set up a quarter final against the Dubs. They ultimately won well in the Croke Park clash. 2001 also saw the introduction of the back door, or qualifiers. Longford’s first second chance outing was away to Wicklow, where the garden county men won 1-14 to 0-11.

1.
Longford
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Longford is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 10,310 according to the 2016 census and it is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the countys population lives there. Longford lies at the meeting of Irelands N4 and N5 National Primary Route roads, the station in Longford on the Dublin-Sligo line is important for commuters. The town is built on the banks of the River Camlin, the name Longford is an anglicisation of the Irish Longphort, from long and port. The area came under the sway of the clan which controlled the south and middle of the County of Longford and hence. A Dominican priory was founded there in 1400, the Corlea Trackway Visitor Centre is located near to Longford, in Keenagh. The Centre houses an Iron Age bog road which was built in 148 BC across the boglands in proximity to the River Shannon. The oak road is the largest of its kind to have uncovered in Europe and was excavated over the years by Professor Barry Raftery of University College Dublin. Inside the building, an 18-metre stretch of preserved road is on permanent display in a specially designed hall with humidifiers to prevent the ancient wood from cracking in the heat. Bord na Mona and the Heritage Service have carried out work on the surrounding bog to ensure that it remains wet. There are other historical artefacts and some exhibits at the centre, St. Mels Cathedral in the town features several stained glass windows by Harry Clarke studios. These include one of his earliest works The consecration of St. Mel as Bishop of Longford which was exhibited at the RDS Annual Art Industries Exhibition in 1910 and it was also exhibited at The Arts and Crafts Society of Ireland fourth exhibition in the same year. The Cathedral was extensively damaged in a fire on Christmas Day 2009, St. Mels Cathedral remained closed for exactly five years following the fire while it was the centre of one of the largest restoration projects undertaken in Europe. It reopened for services at midnight mass on Christmas Eve 2014 and has become a significant tourist attraction. The two most intricated stained-glass windows in the transepts of the Cathedral have been faithfully restored – these depict St Anne, Longford town boasts a state-of-the-art 212-seat theatre called Backstage Theatre just outside of the town, and a four-screen multiplex cinema, with restaurants. The mix and quality of housing is extensive and the Rural Renewal Hi Scheme has ensured that a supply of residential development has come about. The Prison Service HQ boasts a sculpture by renowned artist Remco de Fou which, Connolly Barracks once employed approximately 180 soldiers, many of whom were involved in UN peace-keeping duties, until the barracks closed in January 2009. The town serves as the town of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ardagh

2.
Gaelic football
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Gaelic football, commonly referred to as football or Gaelic, is an Irish team sport. It is played two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kicking or punching the ball into the teams goals or between two upright posts above the goals and over a crossbar 2.5 metres above the ground. Players advance the football, a leather ball, up the field with a combination of carrying, bouncing, kicking, hand-passing. In the game, two types of scores are possible, points and goals, a point is awarded for kicking or hand-passing the ball over the crossbar, signalled by the umpire raising a white flag. A goal is awarded for kicking the ball under the crossbar into the net, positions in Gaelic football are similar to that in other football codes, and comprise one goalkeeper, six backs, two midfielders, and six forwards, with a variable number of substitutes. Gaelic football is one of four sports controlled by the Gaelic Athletic Association, along with hurling and camogie, Gaelic football is one of the few remaining strictly amateur sports in the world, with players, coaches, and managers prohibited from receiving any form of payment. Gaelic football is played on the island of Ireland, although units of the Association exist in other areas such as Great Britain, North America. Outside Ireland, football is played among members of the Irish diaspora. Gaelic Park in New York City is the largest purpose-built Gaelic sports venue outside Ireland, the All-Ireland Senior Championship is considered the most prestigious event in Gaelic football. Under the auspices of the GAA, Gaelic football is a sport, however. Gaelic football was first codified in 1887, although it has purported links to varieties of football played in Ireland. Consequently, the name caid is used by people to refer to present day Gaelic football. Dublin is still known as the football field, the Statute of Galway of 1527 allowed the playing of foot balle and archery but banned hokie—the hurling of a little ball with sticks or staves as well as other sports. By the 17th century, the situation had changed considerably, the games had grown in popularity and were widely played. This was due to the patronage of the gentry, now instead of opposing the games it was the gentry and the ruling class who were serving as patrons of the games. Games were organised between landlords with each team comprising 20 or more tenants, wagers were commonplace with purses of up to 100 guineas. The earliest record of a precursor to the modern game date from a match in County Meath in 1670

3.
Ireland
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Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth. Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland, which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, in 2011, the population of Ireland was about 6.4 million, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain. Just under 4.6 million live in the Republic of Ireland, the islands geography comprises relatively low-lying mountains surrounding a central plain, with several navigable rivers extending inland. The island has lush vegetation, a product of its mild, thick woodlands covered the island until the Middle Ages. As of 2013, the amount of land that is wooded in Ireland is about 11% of the total, there are twenty-six extant mammal species native to Ireland. The Irish climate is moderate and classified as oceanic. As a result, winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area, however, summers are cooler than those in Continental Europe. Rainfall and cloud cover are abundant, the earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10,500 BC. Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century CE, the island was Christianised from the 5th century onward. Following the Norman invasion in the 12th century, England claimed sovereignty over Ireland, however, English rule did not extend over the whole island until the 16th–17th century Tudor conquest, which led to colonisation by settlers from Britain. In the 1690s, a system of Protestant English rule was designed to materially disadvantage the Catholic majority and Protestant dissenters, with the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s and this subsided following a political agreement in 1998. In 1973 the Republic of Ireland joined the European Economic Community while the United Kingdom, Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures, especially in the fields of literature. Alongside mainstream Western culture, an indigenous culture exists, as expressed through Gaelic games, Irish music. The culture of the island shares many features with that of Great Britain, including the English language, and sports such as association football, rugby, horse racing. The name Ireland derives from Old Irish Eriu and this in turn derives from Proto-Celtic *Iveriu, which is also the source of Latin Hibernia. Iveriu derives from a root meaning fat, prosperous, during the last glacial period, and up until about 9000 years ago, most of Ireland was covered with ice, most of the time

4.
Derry GAA
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The Derry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Derry GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland. It is responsible for games in County Londonderry in Northern Ireland. The county board is responsible for the Derry inter-county teams. Gaelic football is the most popular of the county boards gaelic games, the senior football team won an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship in 1993, and has also won six National League titles and seven Ulster Championships. Within a year of the GAAs foundation in 1884, GAA clubs were established around the county in Derry, Desertmartin, however, the administration of Gaelic sports in the county took some time to get properly organised. A Derry county board was established in 1888 and paid affiliation fees to the GAA Central Council, by the following year, although 14 clubs were active, the then GAA President Maurice Davin told the national Congress that the county lacked enough clubs to have its own board. South Derry and North Derry regional boards were established in the 1890s, in the early decades, the Derry GAA competitions took in a number of clubs from County Donegal and Tyrone. At various times clubs in South Derry played in the Antrim GAA or Tyrone leagues, the local Catholic Churchs opposition to playing games on Sundays hampered growth in the 1890s, but there was something of a revival in the 1900s, especially in hurling. The county also competed sporadically in the Ulster Football Championship from 1904, after the disruption caused by political conflict in the 1910s and early 20s, the county board was re-established briefly in 1926, and definitively in 1929, since when it has remained in existence. Derry home games are played in the county grounds at Celtic Park, home football games are also sometimes held in Watty Graham Park, Glen or Dean McGlinchey Park, Ballinascreen, which are regarded as secondary stadia. Hurling games are held at Lavey or Fr McNally Park. The current senior manager is Brian McIver of Balinderry, while Ger Rogan has been appointed Derry senior hurling manager for the incoming season. Both managers also take charge of their respective Under 21 County teams, the Minor football manager is Barry Dillon, while Dee Doherty is in charge of the Minor hurlers. The GAA in the county is administered by a County Committee with a representative from each GAA club in the County, a Management Committee, the county administrative headquarters and centre of excellence are located at Owenbeg, Dungiven. In 1947 Derry won the National Football League, the group leaders were invited to play in the League semi-finals because heavy snow had disrupted the competition. Francie Niblock scored one of the finest goals in League history in Croke Park as Derry beat Clare, in the final, Derry scored a goal ten minutes into the second half through Owen Gribben, but Dublin secured victory with Paddy Farnan and Johnny Joyce goals. In 1965 the Derry Minor team won the All-Ireland Minor Championship, Derry won the Ulster Senior Championship three times in the 1970s, but failed to advance past the All-Ireland semi-final stage on each occasion. In 1973 Anthony McGurk became the first player from Derry to be awarded an All Star Award, the 1980s saw the county win two further All-Ireland Minor Championships and their fifth Ulster Senior Championship

5.
All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
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The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the premier competition in Gaelic football, is an annual series of games played in Ireland and organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final is played on the third or fourth Sunday in September at Croke Park in Dublin, the first Championship to be held featured club teams who represented their respective counties after their county championship. The 21 a-side final was between Commercials of Limerick and Young Irelands of Louth, the final was played in Beech Hill, Clonskeagh on 29 April 1888 with Commercials winning by 1–4 to 0–3. Unlike later All-Ireland competitions, there were no championships. The second Championship was unfinished owing to the American Invasion Tour, the 1888 provincial championships had been completed but after the Invasion tour returned, the All-Ireland semi-final and final were not played. English team London reached the four times in the early years of the competition. In 1892, inter-county teams were introduced to the All-Ireland Championship, Congress granted permission for the winning club to use players from other clubs in the county, thus the inter-county teams came into being. The rules of hurling and football were also altered, goals were made equal to five points, the 1903 Championship brought Kerrys first All-Ireland title. They went on to become the most successful team in the history of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. The first half of the century brought the rise of several teams who won two or more All-Ireland titles in that period, such as Kildare, Mayo, Cavan, Wexford. In the 1990s, a significant sea change took place, as the All-Ireland was claimed by an Ulster team in four consecutive years, since then Ulster has produced more All-Ireland winning teams than any other province. The All-Ireland Qualifiers were introduced in 2001, later that year, the 2001 final brought victory for Galway who became the first football team to win an All-Ireland by springing through the back door. In 2013, Hawk-Eye was introduced for Championship matches at Croke Park and it was first used to confirm that Offaly substitute Peter Cunninghams attempted point had gone wide 10 minutes into the second half of a game against Kildare. 2013 also brought the first Friday night game in the history of the Championship - a first round qualifier between Carlow and Laois, the county is a geographical region in Ireland, and each of the thirty-two counties in Ireland organises its own GAA affairs through a County Board. The county teams play in their respective Provincial Championships in Connacht, Leinster, Munster, kilkenny is currently unique among the 32 Irish county associations in not participating in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. The Provincial Championships operate through a cup competition format. They take place during the months of May, June and July, the winners of each of the four Provincial Championships earn a place in the All-Ireland Quarter-Finals, which take place in the month of August. Each match is played as a single leg, if a match is drawn there is a replay

6.
Sam Maguire Cup
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The Sam Maguire Cup was first presented to the Kildare team in 1928 after defeating Cavan. The Cup is named after Sam Maguire, a figure in the London GAA. A group of his friends formed a committee in Dublin under the chairmanship of Dr Pat McCartan from Carrickmore, County Tyrone and they decided on a cup to be presented to the GAA. The Association were proud to accept the Cup, at the time it cost £300. In todays terms that sum is equivalent to €25,392, the cup is modelled on the Ardagh Chalice and the commission to make it was given to Hopkins and Hopkins, a jewellers and watchmakers of OConnell Bridge, Dublin. The silver cup was crafted, on behalf of Hopkins and Hopkins, by the silversmith Matthew J. Staunton of DOlier Street, Dublin. Maitiú Standun, Staunton’s son, confirmed in a letter printed in the Alive. newspaper in October 2003 that his father had indeed made the original Sam Magiure Cup back in 1928. Matthew J. Staunton came from a line of silversmiths going back to the Huguenots. Matt, as he was known to his friends, served his time under the renowned Dublin silversmith, Edmond Johnson, the 1928 Sam Maguire Cup is a faithful copy of the Ardagh Chalice. The bowl was not spun on a spinning lathe but hand-beaten from a flat piece of silver. Even though it is polished, multiple hammer marks are still visible today. Kildare was the first county to win the Sam Maguire Cup in 1928 after defeating Cavan 2-6 to 2-5, the original trophy was retired in 1988 as it had received some damage over the years. The GAA commissioned a replica from Kilkenny-based silversmith Desmond A. Byrne, the original Sam Maguire Cup is permanently on display in the GAAs museum at Croke Park. In 2010 the GAA asked the same silversmith to produce another replica of the trophy although this was to be used only for marketing purposes, meaths Joe Cassells was the first recipient of Sam Óg. Meath have the distinction of being the last team to lift the old Sam Maguire, only Nine men have had the honour of being presented with the trophy twice as captain. They are, Joe Barrett, Jimmy Murray, J. J. OReilly, Seán Flanagan, Enda Colleran, Tony Hanahoe Declan OSullivan, Brian Dooher and Stephen Cluxton being the only captain to lift it three times. Since the cup was first played for in the All Ireland final of 1928 Kerry have won it 30 times, galway have won it 9 times, Meath 7 and Cork 5. The Sam Maguire Cup was first presented to the team in 1928

7.
Galway GAA
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Galway is one of the few dual counties in Ireland, competing in a similar level in both hurling and gaelic football. The two sports are run by county boards in Galway, which is unusual, even for a dual county. Geographically the two games are quite separate in the county. Generally, football is the dominant game in Connemara, the Aran Islands, Inishbofin, North Galway, Hurling, meanwhile, is traditionally stronger in the South and East parts of Galway, with clubs such as Portumna, Ardrahan, and Gort each having multiple county titles. Galway city has teams in both codes, such as Castlegar in hurling and Salthill-Knocknacarra in football. There are exceptions to this rule of thumb, with hurling pockets in football areas, also, some parish clubs have fielded senior teams in hurling and football in the same season, such as Ballinasloe, Monivea Abbeyknockmoy and Moycullen. Galway GAA has jurisdiction over the area of the county of Galway. Galway GAA forms a part of the branch, Connacht GAA. Unlike other counties in Ireland, Gaelic games in Galway are run by two separate county boards, Gaelic football is organised by the Galway football board and hurling is organised by the Galway hurling board. The boards in Galway also organise the county championships in football and hurling for the clubs of Galway Galways traditional colours are maroon. In the early years of GAA competition, Galway teams wore the colours of the county champions in each sport, in 1936, however, the county adopted maroon as its primary colour. A crest was added to the jersey in the 1950s, with different crests coming into use for each sport, although the teams most often wear white shorts and maroon socks, the teams have also worn all maroon kits in the past. Until 2013, the football and hurling boards of Galway both used their own separate county crests for their teams, the teams began using the same jerseys and crest in 2013, ahead of that years Football and Hurling National Leagues. This new crest was, for the most part, the same as the hurling crest with the most notable differences being the angle of the boat, the first sponsor of any Galway team was Tommy Vardens Catering service, in the mid to late 1980s. Sponsorship wasnt as open in the GAA at the time, Tommy Varden sponsorship of the footballers was followed by the Supermacs fast food chain sponsoring the hurlers. In 2008, Tommy Varden ended the 25-year association with Galway football, after entering receivership, however, Aer Arann were forced to pull out of the sponsorship two years early, having sponsored the team in the 2008,2009 and 2010 seasons. In 2011, it was announced that the jersey would carry the logo of Cancer Care West. This made Galway the first GAA team to display the name of a charity on their county jersey rather than a corporate sponsor

8.
County Longford
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County Longford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Midlands Region and is in the province of Leinster and it is named after the town of Longford. Longford County Council is the authority for the county. The population of the county is 40,810 according to the 2016 census, with an area of 1,091 km2 and a population of 40,810, Longford is the fourth smallest of the 32 counties in area and second smallest in terms of population. It is also the fourth smallest of Leinster’s 12 counties by size and it borders counties Cavan to the northeast, Westmeath to the east and southeast, Roscommon to the west and southwest and Leitrim to the northwest. Most of Longford lies in the basin of the River Shannon with Lough Ree forming much of the western boundary. The north-eastern part of the county, however, drains towards the River Erne, lakeland, bogland, pastureland, and wetland typify Longfords generally low-lying landscapes, the highest point of the county is in the north-west - Carn Clonhugh near Drumlish at 279 m. Cairn Hill is the site of a television broadcasting to much of the Irish midlands. In the list of Irish counties by highest point, Longford ranks third lowest, only Meath and Westmeath have lower maxima. In general, the third of the county is hilly, forming part of the drumlin belt. The southern parts of the county are low-lying, with areas of raised bogland. The River Shannon marks the border with Roscommon while the Rivers Inny. The Royal Canal flows through the south of the county terminating at Cloondara at the Shannon, the canal was refurbished and reopened in 2010. Notable lakes include Kinale Lough and Lough Gowna on the Cavan border, Lough Forbes on the Roscommon border and of course Lough Ree in the south where Longford, Westmeath and Roscommon meet. With a population of 10,310, Longford Town is the largest town in the county followed by Ballymahon, Edgeworthstown, Lanesborough, the county is one half of the Dáil Éireann constituency of Longford–Westmeath. The territory now comprising County Longford was traditionally known as Annaly, Tethbae or Teffia, after the Norman invasion of the 12th century, Annaly was granted to Hugh de Lacy as part of the Liberty of Meath. Monastic remains at Ardagh, Abbeylara, Abbeyderg, Abbeyshrule, Inchcleraun Island in Lough Ree, however, by the 14th century, English influence in Ireland was on the wane. The town of Granard was sacked by Edward Bruces army in 1315, the county was officially shired in 1586 in the reign of Elizabeth I from the northern portion of Westmeath, but English control was not fully established until the aftermath of the Nine Years War

9.
Gaelic Athletic Association
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The Association also promotes Irish music and dance, and the Irish language. It has more than 500,000 members worldwide, assets in excess of €2.6 billion, Gaelic football and hurling are the most popular activities promoted by the organisation, and the most popular sports in the Republic of Ireland in terms of attendances. Gaelic football is also the largest participation sport in Northern Ireland, GAA Handball is the Irish governing body for the sport of handball, while the other Gaelic sport, rounders, is managed by the GAA Rounders National Council. And so, the Gaelic Athletic Association was founded, the architects and founding members were Michael Cusack of County Clare, Maurice Davin, Joseph K. Bracken, Thomas St George McCarthy, P. J. Ryan of Tipperary, John Wise-Power, and John McKay. Up to the century most of the members were farm labourers, small farmers. But from 1900 onwards a new type of person – those who were now being influenced by the Gaelic League — joined the movement and they tended to be clerks, school teachers or civil servants. In 1922 it passed over the job of promoting athletics to the National Athletic, while some units of the Association outside Ireland participate in Irish competitions, the Association does not hold internationals played according to the rules of either Gaelic football or hurling. Compromise rules have been reached with two related sports, hurlers play an annual fixture against a national shinty team from Scotland. The venue alternates between Ireland and Australia, recently, the Irish welcomed the All Australian team at the headquarters of the GAA on 21 November 2015. It was single one-off test match, which led the Irish to reclaim the Cormac McAnallen cup by a score of 56-52, the association has had a long history of promoting Irish culture. Through a division of the known as Scór, the Association promotes Irish cultural activities, running competitions in music. Rule 4 of the GAAs Official Guide states, The Association shall actively support the Irish language, traditional Irish dancing, music, song, and other aspects of Irish culture. It shall foster an awareness and love of the ideals in the people of Ireland. The group was founded in 1969, and is promoted through various Association clubs throughout Ireland. The Association has many stadiums scattered throughout Ireland and beyond, every county, and nearly all clubs, have grounds on which to play their home games, with varying capacities and utilities. The hierarchical structure of the GAA is applied to the use of grounds, the provincial championship finals are usually played at the same venue every year. Croke Park is the Associations flagship venue and is colloquially as Croker or Headquarters. With a capacity of 82,300, it ranks among the top five stadiums in Europe by capacity, having undergone extensive renovations for most of the 1990s, every September, Croke Park hosts the All-Ireland inter-county Hurling and Football Finals as the conclusion to the summer championships

10.
Captain (sports)
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In team sports, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy. In either case, it is a position that indicates honor, in association football and cricket, a captain is also known as a skipper. Depending on the sport, team captains may be given the responsibility of interacting with game officials regarding application and interpretation of the rules, in many team sports, the captains represent their respective teams when the match official does the coin toss at the beginning of the game. Various sports have differing roles and responsibilities for team captains, in martial arts, the class lead instructor, acting under the direction and authority of the Master or a senior belt, may be called the captain

11.
Gaelic Athletic Association county
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However, the GAA county does not always and everywhere cover precisely the same territory as the traditional county. There are also instances where the county boundary does not coincide precisely with the GAA county. Each county board is responsible for organising GAA club fixtures within the county, and for the promotion and development of Gaelic games, the GAA county can also refer to the inter-county teams fielded by each county board. Since the inception of the county system, there have been changes to the regions of control of the overseas units. In Ireland the concept of the county is very strong and changing the county boundary is extremely controversial, in 2002 a proposal to divide Dublin in two was quickly and strongly opposed. Gaelic Athletic Association counties outside Ireland cover large geographic areas which are not considered as counties in any other context. For example, Scotland is a county for GAA purposes, as is London, Gaelic games county colours List of GAA county nicknames

12.
National Hurling League
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The National Hurling League is a league competition featuring amateur inter-county hurling teams from Ireland and England. Founded in 1925, it is regarded as the secondary inter-county hurling competition after the All-Ireland Championship, the National Hurling League has been associated with a title sponsor since 1985. As this sponsor has changed over the years the league too has been known by various names, the competition is currently known as the Allianz Hurling League. Currently it has 34 teams divided into six divisions, which are known as Divisions 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, six teams participate in the top five divisions with four teams contesting the bottom division. Promotion and relegation between divisions is a central feature of the National Hurling League. The Gaelic Athletic Association organises the league, which begins in February and concludes in May, the prize for the winning Division 1A team is the Dr. Croke Cup. In some seasons, including 2012, the winner of Division 1B is allowed to compete in the stages of the Division 1A title. The Division 1 title has been won at least once by ten different teams, the all-time record-holders are Tipperary, who have won the competition 19 times. The NHL was first held in 1925–26,38 years after the first All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the League has traditionally played second fiddle to the All-Ireland, with most counties using it as a warm-up for the All-Ireland. This was not helped by the fact that the League was played in winter while the championship had the more attractive summer dates, in 1997, the league was changed to a February–April calendar, which has increased interest with attendances growing and live games broadcast on TG4. 34 teams play in the National Hurling League, there are six teams in the top five divisions, and four teams in Division 3B. Each team plays each other once, either home or away,2 points are awarded for a win, and 1 for a draw. Where two teams are level on points, the team won the head-to-head match is ranked ahead. If this game was a draw, points difference is used to rank the teams, where three or more teams are level on points, points difference is used to rank them. Cavan and New York are the teams not to contest in the National Hurling League. Division 1A, Top four teams qualify for NHL quarter-finals, bottom two teams play a relegation play-off, with the losing team relegated to Division 1B. Division 1B, Top team promoted to 1A, Top four teams qualify for NHL quarter-finals. Bottom two teams play a relegation play-off, with the team playing a promotion-relegation match against the Division 2A champions

The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC), the premier competition in Gaelic football, is an annual series of …

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Fans of Sligo (in black) are visible in the crowd among supporters of Cork, Meath and Tyrone. The introduction of the All-Ireland Qualifiers in 2001 has provided weaker counties with opportunities to play big games at Croke Park.